The moment was for him the crisis of his diplomatic career; for the secretaries it was merely the beginning of another intolerable delay, as though they were a military outpost waiting orders to quit an abandoned position.

这一刻对他来说是他外交生涯的危机。 对秘书们来说， 这只是另一个无法忍受的延误的开始， 就好像他们是一个军事前哨， 等待命令离开一个被遗弃的位置。